


A strange friendship

by w_s



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Bisexual, Friendship, Gay Bar, Gen, LGBT
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-22
Updated: 2016-06-22
Packaged: 2018-07-16 13:35:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7270372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/w_s/pseuds/w_s
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barba and Rollins run into each other in a surprising place</p>
            </blockquote>





	A strange friendship

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short little fic that I thought would be fun

Rafael Barba found himself, not for the first time, sitting in the corner of the bar alone. From time to time he would end up at this gay bar, have a couple drinks, and leave alone. He never really went there with the intention of hooking up. Sometimes he just felt like being around other people like him. He had found himself going there more often lately. He had been feeling lonely. He used to find it comforting to be there, it wasn’t a sweaty club where people were doing cocaine and having sex in the bathroom, it was just a normal bar that happened to serve the LGBT community. Lately, he was feeling more pathetic. He realized that he was starting to look like a creepy, lonely old guy in the corner. Yet, for a third Friday night in a row, he found himself there and people watching. He finished his drink and decided to use the washroom before heading home. On his way back he found himself staring directly at a familiar face. They both looked at each other a little shocked and uncomfortable. Barba had known who he was since he was in college but still mostly kept the information to himself. Mostly thanks to his Mami he was still quite embarrassed about being bisexual. He tried to tell him it was just because he was personal and it wasn’t anyone’s business, which was true, yet looking at a co-worker while he stood in a gay bar made him feel lightheaded.   
“Counsellor.” Amanda Rollins tried to sound casual.   
“Detective.” He nodded and tried to walk past her.   
“Wait,” Rollins reached out and touched his arm. “Please don’t tell anyone you saw me here.” He looked into her eyes and realized that she was just as embarrassed to be seen there.   
“I won’t if you won’t.” Barba managed a smile. “Do you want to get a drink? Or are you here with friends?”   
“A drink sounds great.” Rollins replied. Barba ordered them each a pint and they sat down at Barba’s back booth. They sat awkwardly for a couple of moments. They got along well enough at work but they had never spent time together outside of work. They weren’t friends and this situation was really bizarre. Barba was starting to regret not just saying hello and leaving. “This is my first time here. My first time anywhere like this.” Rollins blurted out. “I don’t know why I came.”  
“You don’t have to know.” Barba smiled. “If you want someone to talk about … anything. I’m here.” Rollins nodded and they fell into another silence. After a while and most of the pint Rollins was feeling a little more comfortable.  
“I’m really confused.” She admitted. “I’ve obviously been with men before and I even thought that I might love some of them but … I always felt like I was missing something. Then one night I was out at a bar, not a gay bar just a normal one, and found myself talking to a woman. She was flirting with me and I found myself flirting back. We kissed and it felt great.” She shrugged. “It’s no secret that I’ve had my fair share of problems over the years. I think that might be one of the reasons but … I just don’t know.”   
“Well you don’t have to define yourself right now or ever really.” Barba shrugged. “I struggled a lot too. I realized I liked men when I was in college and I found a bit of a community but these guys were all gay and confident in being gay. I liked, still like, women too. I didn’t know any bisexual people. I didn’t even know it was possible.”   
“I had no idea that you weren’t straight.”   
“You weren’t supposed to know.” Barba replied plainly. “I’m not completely in the closet but I’m not exactly out either. As far as I know nobody at work knows. I know that no one at SVU wouldn’t mind but … I’m not sure about everyone else.”   
“Yeah.” Rollins southern drawl was coming out more as they were partly through their second round. “Growing up in Georgia I didn’t know any gay or bi people. At least anyone who was open. Anything I heard about was all negative. Looking back I think I had a lot of crushes on other girls growing up. I’ve never been with a woman though. I kissed me college roommate once on a dare.” Rollins chuckled a bit. “I want to though. I don’t want to keep lying to myself.”  
“Well maybe next time we can go to a lesbian bar. You might have better luck.” Barba laughed as he gestured to the room full of almost all men.   
“Yeah, maybe.” Amanda smiled.


End file.
